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The Orioles have acquired Scott Feldman and Steve Clevenger from the Cubs for Jake Arrieta, Pedro Strop, and international bonus money, according to Keith Law of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Feldman, who is headed towards free agency this winter, has long been viewed as a trade candidate for the Cubs.

I'm not surprised that Arrieta and Strop were traded as a package; but it really concerns me that we gave up some of our international bonus money.

Jake Arrieta and Pedro Strop badly needed a change of scenery. They both have awesome stuff, with terrible results. They could both tank, they could both excel, one of them could tank, who knows. It's a good trade for both teams. The Orioles really needed some rotation stability. Feldman won't be our best pitcher, but he's exactly the kind of guy we need so that pitchers like Stinson & McFarland don't get starts. Time will tell which side got the better of the deal. I'm a little intrigued by Clevanger. He's a future DFA IMO, but he could help us right now. He has a .312/.367/.436 at AAA. He plays the corner infield positions, and catches. With this trade, we currently have a rotation of Hammel, Tillman, Gonzalez, Feldman, and Britton & a bullpen of Johnson, Hunter, O'Day, Matusz, Patton, McFarland, and Gausman. When Chen comes back, I'd option Britton. I'd option Flaherty and put Clevanger on the roster. He backs up the corner infield positions and provides a third catcher, allowing Wieters to DH more while Casilla backs up the middle infield and Dickerson backs up the outfield. Then, call up Jairo Asencio and option Gausman.

I'll always be a sucker for Arrieta. This is the hill I've chosen to die on.

But Feldman looks like a nice upgrade to the back of the rotation. While his ERA spiked last year, his FIP and xFIP have both been under 4 in each of the last three seasons. So far this year, his ERA is in line with those numbers, which makes it seem like he's having an abnormally good year, even though his peripherals haven't shown much change at all. That's a good sign, and our infield defense should only help matters with his 50% GB rate.

Chen will replace Britton w/in a couple of weeks. That is-unless Britton succeeds and we decide to trade Hammel (who goes FA next season). That's an interesting possibility-and also a chance to bolster the minors a little.

Agree w/osforlife. I'd like them to get another power arm for late-inning short relief to replace Strop.Ascencio mite be a possibility, Russell or even Gurka from Bowie.

I don't see any reason to trade Jason Hammel. Yes, he is only signed through this season, but the Orioles are legitimate contenders. Contenders usually don't trade away their veteran pieces, unless it's a special case. At this point, the Orioles should be looking into moves like the one above, not focused on moves that will bolster the minor league system later. There is currently nobody healthy in the Orioles system that could do a better job than Hammel, so I see no reason to trade him. I fully expect him to pitch alot better in the second half.

I like the trade. Its a shame Arrieta has gone but he has alot of potential, but he is very jekyll & hyde. The same stands for strop this year. Clevenger can push teagarden for the backup catcher spot, im dissapointed in teagarden but then he starts hitting a little.Ive watched Feldman pitch this year and im impressed, i think he was one of the better, cheaper options on the market.

Not liking this deal. We gave up two power arms for a guy who will likely get lit up in the AL East. Couldn't we have found a better send out and gotten Garza?? This deal sucks. Even getting Saunders back would have been a better bet. Unfortunately this organization continues to take a Mickey Mouse approach to the trade market.

Garza wouldnt come cheap, i reckon we would have had to give up at least one of our top 5 prospects and another prospect in the top 20. I understand that he is proven in the AL east but i wouldnt be comfortable giving up these kind of prospects.

ljmillar22 wrote:Garza wouldnt come cheap, i reckon we would have had to give up at least one of our top 5 prospects and another prospect in the top 20. I understand that he is proven in the AL east but i wouldnt be comfortable giving up these kind of prospects.